The Missing Storms
by Unnormal Child
Summary: Instead of Neji, it is Sakura who protects Naruto and gets vitally wounded. However, instead of dying, she is sent 4 years back - right before her academy graduation. And, what is more, she is in Naruto's body, obliged to act like an idiot and pretend to be in love with her 13-years-old annoying self! Sasuke's arrogance doesn't help her a bit.
1. Chapter 1

Yo, so this idea was bugging me for awhile now but I couldn't bring myself to write cause, well, the idea is itself quite huge, so this fic is likely to be at least 100k. Just a few things you should know before reading:

- It's a Drama & Humor fanfic, meaning sometimes it's gonna be angsty and other times funny.

- The main characters are Team 7 + Kurama but there are going to be plenty more either major or minor characters.

- There is swearing – occasional, but still present.

- The plot is relatively similar but I say _relatively._

Thanks for attention and read on!

* * *

**Chapter One**

"Sakura-chan!" a loud roar finally registered in her clouded mind, causing young girl to jerk up and try to access the situation she was in. "Sakura-chan, open your eyes, dammit!"

Everything slowly started to make sense, recent events rushing at her in waves. She was fighting against Madara and Obito. Someone – she couldn't put a face to the attacker - tried to kill Naruto. Instinctively, she ran forward, trying to prevent it, not thinking of shouting for him to dodge the attack. She couldn't remember anything after that.

It was Naruto's voice that was shouting at her right now, so, with slight relief, she realised that she succeeded. However, a moment later her senses kicked in and she felt horrible pain in her abdomen. Being a high-class medic – and a kunoichi, at that – she quickly accessed her body's condition and, with shock, realised that she was dying.

"Sakura-san, please, try to open your eyes," a female voice – probably, Hinata's – sounded next to her right ear, and she obeyed. It was more difficult that she could've expected, and for a period of time all she could see was a mix of grey and white. Then, her eyes were finally able to focus on the two worried faces that belonged to Naruto and Hinata. Hinata didn't seem as anxious as Sakura's best friend – her face was a mixture of unease and concentration, while blond didn't try to hide his distress. He was holding her hand – she couldn't see it, but she felt his sweaty palm clutching hers and that gave her a faint sense of hope.

"Sakura-san, your condition is critical," Hinata urged, a deep frown giving out just how serious it really was. "I-I'm trying to do my best but I'm afraid the reason I can't heal you isn't because of the lack of chakra – I simply can't. Your injuries are too deep and your vital organs are-"

"I know, Hinata," she slurred, not recognising her deep throaty voice. "I can sense it, and I would advise you to stop if you don't want to pass out cause of chakra deprivation."

"I can give her more chakra," Uzumaki exclaimed, "or I can give it to you and you can heal yourself."

"I don't think so – as Hinata said, my organs are damaged too much," Sakura responded on the edge of passing out. Shit, she thought she had more time, yet her ripped liver thought otherwise.

"Fight it, Sakura-chan! I know you can – Tsunade-baa-chan is probably on her way here right now, just hold on, she can do-"

"She can't do anything!" pinkette shouted, tears forming in her eyes. Sakura regretted shouting a moment later when she started coughing blood. "Damn it, Naruto, we are in the middle of the fight and we barely have medics, let alone spare organs that someone skilled can transplant for me!"

Inhaling loudly, she closed her eyes, her head falling back on the ground. She could still hear people shouting and deafening explosions in the distance. It struck her then how insignificant her life really was – or anyone's, for that matter. Her condition was vital and she was going to die in a matter of seconds, but that didn't change anything. People were still fighting, laughing, crying – living, even when she would be gone. She was there for a fleeting moment. And she was going to die.

"Sakura-san I..."

"It's okay, Hinata," she choked. "Just promise me to take care of this baka."

Tears started rolling down Hyuuga's rosy cheeks while Naruto gave out an inhuman roar of mixed pain and desperation.

"Please, try to think of something you love," brunette whispered. "Try to- It will make you feel better. Please."

And so she did. Sakura thought of things she valued – Konoha, helping people, fighting – but, somehow, she ended up thinking of Naruto. With his sky-blue eyes and happy smile that always made her feel protected. Their evenings in "Ichiraku", their occasional fights, their perfect teamwork...

She gave out a few more coughs before her she couldn't feel Naruto's hand anymore and her mind became completely blank.

Haruno felt like she was swimming. The feeling was strange and fuzzy, for she only swam a handful of times in her life, yet it was joyful. She couldn't remember the last time she felt so relaxed and genuinely happy – the war took her ability to be overoptimistic away from her.

She couldn't see anything and wasn't sure if her eyes were wide opened or closed; still, she, for some reason, was sure that she was in some safe place. It felt like home.

The sudden swirling reminded her of chakra flow but it was way stronger that her own, even at her strongest moments when her chakra was practically spinning out of control.

Some time later – Sakura wasn't sure if it was seconds, minutes or hours that have passed – the comfortable swirling abruptly stopped, as if someone pushed her to the ground. Instincts told her to resist, and so she did which caused her senses to finally catch up with her.

She was sitting – that much she could tell. And she was sitting on something soft – probably, tatami or bed. She felt her body – it was a foreign feeling but that wasn't her biggest surprise. Kunoichi opened her eyes and looked around. Her vision was still adjusting when she caught a faint smell of ramen. _This is exactly how Naruto's apartment smells, _she thought with a smile, yet her smile dropped when she registered her surrounding.

She was in Naruto's room. It was a tad different to how it looked the last time she saw it and was more dirty – the exact way it was back in their genin days. With a soft laugh, girl noted to herself that, actually, he was still a genin.

Alright, so it seemed that she died and her version of Heaven included Naruto's apartment – it could have been worse, right?

She wondered if her Heaven included the rest of the Konoha, so she stood up and walked to the window which caused her to realise a few things at the same time.

She was shorter – not majorly, but she was definitely shorter. Also, her clothes felt rather baggy and hair wasn't as long as usually – she didn't cut it for some time now, so why was it so short? Also, her hands were calloused that caused Sakura to look down at them. And freeze.

She was in orange jumpsuit. Her hands looked boyish and, _Oh, Kami, please let it be a dream, _her chest was even flatter than the one she had in her genin days.

She ran towards the only mirror Naruto had in his apartment and looked at the reflection. An inhuman scream left her throat as she realised that, yes, she was in Naruto's 13-years-old body.

Pinching herself didn't help; okay, so she wasn't sleeping, but what kind of heaven is it?! She was in her best friend's body, for Kami's sake!

It took Haruno some time to calm down and think rationally. If she was in Naruto's body, was there a possibility of her 13-years-old self walking down the street right now? And if so, how did she end up in someone else's body, instead of her own?

She was slowly, but steadily losing her hope that it was Heaven. To think about it, she remembered reading about different types of chakra clashing while healing nearly dying patient that caused him or her to fall in coma. Was she in coma now? Was it her imagination?

Or did she really just travel in time, only to be placed in Uzumaki's body?

_Sakura, stay calm, _she told herself on the edge of panic attack. _It's probably some kind of sick joke that your brain made up to drive you crazy – don't give in._

Firstly, she decided to take a shower that would always help her to come up with solution for the most insane and unimaginable situation but her eyes widened with realisation that, if she looked like Naruto, then she surely-

Giving out a frustrated sigh, she whispered 'Henge!', transforming into her 17-years-old body. She and Naruto were close but not _that _close; she was a medic and a professional but seeing Uzumaki naked would be crossing all friendship lines, without doubt.

It took her half an hour to get ready and throw out rubbish – she couldn't imagine how could anyone keep milk that expired months ago. As she shuffled around, she noticed the lack of his headband and their team's photo – instead, green google glasses laid atop his cupboard, which meant he was still an academy student.

Shuffling around some more, she decided to leave the house for a walk. It was early evening; people were slowly walking down the street, occasionally throwing her a dirty look. Instantly, Sakura remembered that at this age Naruto was hugely bullied and despised by adults of Konoha. She tried to act like her blond friend by holding her head up and looking at everyone arrogantly, yet it was difficult with the level of hate she was receiving her way.

The safest place to go would be library but Naruto never went to libraries – unless she dragged him there – so she would only heighten people's suspicions. Going to 'Ichiraku' didn't feel right without her best friend on her side; instead Haruno decided to just mess around and soon was completely sure that it was, indeed, Konoha's state 4 years ago. Hidden Leaf was calm and protected, having no idea of the danger it was yet to indulge in – but then, not knowing was a bliss.

Cold wind, laughing people, strong smell of sake and sweets. No, it didn't feel like a dream at all and, being an atheist, she was more or less sure that it wasn't Heaven. Then was it genjutsu? Or did she really just travel in time?

She heard female screams in the distance with a sense of alarm, yet a second later she relaxed – those were just fangirls screaming 'Sasuke-kun!'.

Wait, Sasuke.

She abruptly turned around and ran towards the sound and was soon presented with a picture of 13-years-old Sasuke calmly walking towards his family's compound while a group of girls followed him with awe in their eyes.

The Sasuke in front of her was the one she felt in love with; he experienced his family's massacre and his goal was killing his brother – because he didn't know the truth. His life goal was wrong and she knew that much now - it's not his brother he should be targeting but Danzo.

She can save Uchiha brothers from their tragic fate. She can prevent Sasuke from getting Orochimaru's seal. She can warn Konoha of Orochimaru and Akatsuki, along with a number of other threats. None of them needs to die.

She can save so many lives.

Her task was crisp and clear and she couldn't deny it anymore: she had a second chance. A chance to change everything, to save everyone. She was the key.

"Why are you staring, usuratonkachi?" a familiar voice sounded a few meters away from her. As she looked up, this version of Sasuke was staring at her with deep frown on his face, head arrogantly cocked to the right.

How could she forget Naruto and Sasuke's rivalry? Sasuke's arrogance will undoubtedly annoy her enough to want to punch him, but then, wasn't it what they usually did?

Ah, this was going to be a piece of cake.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

She already knew that acting like Naruto is likely to be an exhausting task; unfortunately, she had no idea just how difficult it is to act like a complete idiot – hating Sasuke was an easy part of it.

"Shut up, Dattebayo!" she growled and was surprised with how deep Naruto's voice sounded to him; she remembered joking how feminine it was to people around him. "I wasn't looking at you, baka."

"It's funny that you are the one calling me 'baka', baka," coldly retorted Uchiha and if someone asked Sakura at that moment what she wanted the most, she would explicitly describe the sound of Sasuke's head hitting a cement wall.

_And here I was, wondering why Naruto hated Sasuke so much. Duh._

However, when she opened her mouth to snap at him, she saw herself, standing in a crowd of fangirls. The eyes of this time's Sakura were filled with rage and annoyance; 17-years-old Sakura could practically see '_This baka is talking to Sasuke-kun! ' _on past Sakura's face. Boy was she infatuated with Sasuke!

"I can waste my time talking to you or can go practice my ninjutsu," present Sakura snickered, throwing her hands behind her head like her best friend did on multiple occasions. "Sayonara, douchebag!"

As she slowly retreated, she could hear Uchiha's fangirls screaming rude words in her – or, rather, Naruto's – address. She was 100 percent sure that when they meet again, Sasuke will undoubtedly show his hostility and try to push her so that she was the one who initiated their fight. Funnily enough, she was about 4 years older than him and had much more patience than Naruto, so whatever it was he was going to throw at her, she was ready.

Feeling tired and a bit hungry, she automatically headed to her own house but soon stopped with a start, gazing lonely at the route she usually took while heading home. There was little to no chance of meeting her parents... here, whatever 'here' was. Okay, she might as well call it 'past'.

It was often in the past few years that she felt lonely, although it usually faded in comparison with her constant worry for her friends. However, now, on the street full of people, she suddenly felt lonelier than ever.

_Snap out of it, _she told herself and resisted slapping her cheeks because that would cause even more attention to her persona. _No way in hell am I going back to my moping and clingy self._

As she entered Naruto's – now hers – apartment, kunoichi threw the key on the cupboard. She then proceeded to the fridge, fished out some rice and soy sauce and made herself a dinner. The kitchen – and the rest of apartment – felt depressingly quiet and the clock's ticking was as loud as a thunderstorm during a silent night. She couldn't imagine how could Naruto live like this for the majority of his life.

Quickly finishing her rice and washing the dishes, she proceeded to bed as there wasn't anything else to do. Talking to Hokage can wait. It took her some time to fall asleep, for she kept turning and throwing off her blanket to feel comfortable. Finally, her mind started to daze and she drifted off.

While at war her sleep was never calm and steady but here and now she didn't feel anything; there weren't screams of anguish or people calling out her name – on the contrary, her mind was at peace.

Nevertheless, it didn't last. Her undisturbed dream was soon attacked with faint imaged; fire and blood started to take over her. Haruno felt distressed, yet, for some unknown reason, she couldn't wake up like she usually did while having nightmares.

A moment later she appeared in a damp and somber corridor. There were no source of light that she could see but, for some reason, she could see things clearly.

She couldn't remember being in such place. Some time ago she came across a book about dreams that stated that one can't dream about something, unless one saw it before. Sakura knew as much because she remembered all these screaming people in her dreams, be it an unsuccessful operation or death on the battlefield. These were the worst kind of dreams.

She looked both ways but couldn't see any exit so she decided to go in a random direction. The walls she was passing by had a golden shade and were chipped in some places, looking rather old. Just like when she travelled to this time, she wasn't sure how much time has passed until she neared tall gates that reminded her of latices. The bars were thick and stood about a meter from each other that would allow Sakura to pass without a struggle. She couldn't see anything beyond them, however – it was miraculously dark.

A loud bawl caught her off-guard and caused to run a few meters away from the gates. Soon, two big slanting red eyes lit up and looked at her as if she was just a bug. Seconds later, the monster revealed itself, his skin lighting up and, with a start, Haruno realised that she forgot a small, yet crucial detail: her best friend contained the Nine-Tails. And, if she remembered Naruto's words correctly, they 'didn't get along too well'. Well, that was a nice way to put it.

"I don't recall inviting you here, human girl," the creature growled, and Sakura felt goosebumps. There weren't many things – not anymore – that got her goosebumps but she was certain that there weren't many people whose first encounter with this beast went smooth and steady.

Thinking about his words, she looked down at herself and realised that here, in her dream or whatever it was, she looked the exact way she died on the battlefield. Her cloak was soaked in her own blood that has already dried, yet its coppery smell was just as strong as it would be with a fresh wound. It seemed like demon didn't miss the smell either, for his pupils dilated and he moved closer to the bars.

"I am Haruno Sakura," kunoichi said, her voice far more confident than she actually felt. "I am Naruto's-"

"I know exactly who you are, kunoichi," the demon replied leisurely, sweeping his tales from side to side as if he was bored. "Yet I don't know why are you here and why does your life energy feels so different from the rest of ninjas in this world."

"I don't know how I got here," she honestly replied, eyeing him warily. "The last thing I remember is I'm dying and – here I am, four years into the past." She found it somewhat ironic that the first living creature that found out about this was a beast that brought colossal damage to her village ages ago.

"Four years, you say." Kurama's voice became fascinated and his eyes squinted, nose deeply inhaling her aroma. "Hmm, interesting."

Shifting from one foot to the other, Sakura was feeling uncertain as to what her next actions going to be. Nine-Tails wasn't saying anything, instead looking at her with blank expression. She forced her mind to concentrate and wake up but Kurama, it seemed, was able to control her mind in more ways that one.

Just as she was going to ask him what he wanted, he chortled and, in a blink of an eye, everything was filled with water. She wasn't prepared for it, so she instinctively did a few deep breaths that caused a lot of water to enter her lungs. She was a ninja, dammit, yet she was almost helpless in water so the situation urged her to think quickly.

She couldn't see neither the bottom nor the top but she didn't let herself panic. She didn't have much time left with so much water in her lungs and she tried to concentrate chakra mask that would prevent her from drinking any more water, but nothing happened. With a sheer of horror, she realised she can't feel her chakra at all. Desperate, she did what her instincts told her from the very beginning: she started swimming. Because she couldn't tell where was top and where – bottom, she did her best guess by swimming at the direction that felt warmer. She remembered a long forgotten memory of her 8-years-old self, swimming in the sea besides her parents, and enjoying every second of it. That time her body felt light like feathers; now, however, her limbs felt like dumbbells.

_This is the second time I'm dying over the last 24 hours, _she thought off-handedly as she felt her muscles betraying her and her mind being repressed – she couldn't tell if it was simply her imagination or her brain was indeed squeezed in someone's fist. Nonetheless, she fought and decided that it was better passing out because of lack of water and dying than dying because she decided to give up.

"You are quite a fighter, aren't you?" a deep rumble echoed through the water that was abruptly gone, causing Sakura to fall on the ground from at least a few dozen meters, though she was able to land on her feet at the last second. Then, exhausted, she slipped down on her knees and took a few deliberate breath, coughing water.

"Why can't I use my chakra here?" she demanded in a hoarse voice, standing up on her wobbly legs.

"Because you've never been in this place – you aren't able yet to control your chakra when you drift off and dream."

"So this is a dream?" It wasn't hard to believe, if she were honest: everything felt extremely surreal and, it seemed, all of her senses heightened.

"I wouldn't call it that but right now it's your mind against my enormous amount of chakra, not your body and charkra – though I doubt it would make a difference in resisting me," the monster chuckled, motioning at her soaked and debacle appearance.

"Naruto resisted you," she argued.

"Naruto's spirit is naturally much stronger than yours, Haruno. He was able to resist me while no one else could; indeed a significant boy, that kid. I indulged him into his greatest wishes and promised unlimited power, yet he resisted because it would mean losing himself and possibly hurting his friends."

She looked around, hoping to see a door or, well, any possible exit because she didn't like where this conversation was going.

"And where is he?" she asked, already prepared for another mad outcome, like quake or tornado. She didn't want to think about it before, for she was too anxious of the possible answer. It was possible that because of her invading his mind, this time's Naruto simply disappeared – or, even worse, died.

"As you could've already assumed, because of you invading his mind and body, Uzumaki had to be stored." Nine-Tails explained. "Nature didn't allow him to just disappear because of his destiny and fate that waits him. He's too valuable to this world."

"When you say 'stored', what do you mean?" Sakura stressed; still feeling uneasy and cautious but she had to know.

"Replacing his mind with yours would mean his death but, as I said earlier, he's too valuable, so his brain was able to store him. You are using your brain – there is no denying that – but, if you dug deep enough, you will be able to access his brain, too."

Haruno felt dizzy with the possibility that was given to her; Nine-Tails literally told her that she can read Naruto's mind, if she tried hard enough! And, more importantly, he was alive - somewhere down there, almost forgotten, but alive.

"I can see hope in your eyes, it's sickening," the demon snorted. "I said that because, in theory, it is possible, but you aren't able to even control your chakra while dreaming – it's impossible for you to do something as significant as dug into someone's else's mind that resides here."

"Naruto is here?" Again, she started looking around and ran a few meters away but there was nothing but chipped walls and wet floor.

"Be patient, girl," the demon answered. Everything around Sakura started swirling and disappearing until she abruptly sat up on Naruto's – and now hers – bed.

_Be patient, _words echoed in her head and she silently cursed. Like hell was she going to be patient when the matter concerned her closest friend.

As she looked at the clock, it was half past five in the morning – the time flew fast when you were dreaming-slash-hallucinating. Yawning, she threw off the blanket and got ready for the day.

It was about time to leave for the Academy when she heard a knock to the door. She couldn't remember Naruto having any friends during this time, so that was itself quite weird.

"Coming!" she shouted, putting on Naruto's googles and zipping up the jumpsuit. She then proceeded to open the door and frozen in place, eyes wide. "Eh... hello?"

* * *

A/N: To avoid any confusion, I'll be calling 17 y.o. Sakura 'present Sakura' and 13 y.o. is going to be 'past Sakura'. Team 7 now consists of two Sakuras and Sasuke, oh boy xD

Aaand I lied – I can't see much humour happening in the future, so I'm changing it to adventures.

On a side note, thank you for the support and I would love to hear more feedback soon!


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

"Hi, Naruto!" Iruka-sensei greeted, stepping inside the apartment. Appalled, Sakura took a step back and, slowly shutting the door behind her ex-sensei, numbly followed him inside. "Oh, I see you finally cleaned up!"

"Yatta, yatta, had some free time from training," she replied, putting on an 'idiot smile'. Surprisingly enough it worked and Iruka nodded.

"I'm pretty sure you just had a bet with someone, but it doesn't matter – I wanted to talk to you before lessons start." Brunet took a sit on Naruto's bed, looking at him expectantly. "Well?"

Long pause. "Eh?"

"Did you prepare?" Sighing, elaborated Iruka to which he received an understanding 'Oh!' and vicious head nodding.

If only she knew what the hell was happening.

"You know, any other student would at least pretend being scared," he noted, rolling his eyes and standing up. "After all, today is the ninja school's graduation exam, and you failed the last two!"

Inwardly, Sakura cringed, calling Naruto 'baka' for the hundredth time and gave out a 'Naruto laugh' – a mixture of arrogance and general happiness. "Don't worry, Iruka-sensei, I gonna pass this exam and become a Hokage!"

Umino hummed to himself and soon left. Sakura didn't know how to feel about it, hence she decided to practice 'Bushin' – the technique that she didn't get to use in ages. Ever since she woke up from a slumber, she could finally feel her chakra circulating on her full; kunoichi didn't know whether it was just her luck or something Kurama did, but she finally felt like herself.

Off-handedly, she realised that she was already changing the history. This eventful morning Naruto was found drawing on Hokage's faces and was brought to the classroom by angry Iruka – she heard this story a number of times from both Naruto and the villagers. How would this affect the future? Or was she in different timeline to begin with?

Time travelling was never something serious to dwell upon – people saw it as a part of fantasy and science fiction, therefore not paying it much attention. Now, however, Sakura had to re-evaluate not only her views on travelling, but also on a number of other things. If time travelling existing, didn't it mean that other surreal things were possible as well? Was it possible to bring a person from the dead without using Edo Tensei? She had a lot of thoughts on her mind but that had to wait.

A few hours later she performed 'Bushing no Jutsu' without a struggle, receiving a thumb-up from both of her examiners and a blue headband that, Sakura knew, was very precious to Naruto. And so, she decided to celebrate this little victory by visiting 'Ichiraku'.

"Hey, old man, get me some Miso ramen!" She shouted as she took a place in her friend's favourite place. For once, it was the only bar she could stand because its owner never treated Uzumaki in a wrong way.

"Coming up, Naruto!" Teuchi replied, looking rather busy. "How was your day?"

It was weird talking to him, for she was never the one initiating their conversations – obviously, it was a loud and obnoxious blond. "Good, I passed my exam and I am now a ninja!" She proudly pointed at her headband.

The rest of the meal went relatively calm, save for a couple of customers that thought that intimidating Naruto would make them somewhat above 'the Konoha's idiot'. Poor souls had no idea that Naruto will one day become one of the greatest ninjas in history of shinobi.

Paying for the meal and shouting 'Arigato!', she finally decided to pay a visit to the present Hokage. With mild melancholy, she looked up at the faces of Leaf's Hokages, carved in the mountain. Suddenly, she wasn't so sure that saving Sarutobi would be a right decision. For once, the man was quite old, making it obvious for the majority that his time was almost up. If she allowed herself to feel emotional, she would save him, yet the girl's mind was calculating the situation. If he died, Konoha would need a new Hokage; she could pretend that she knew the great Sannin Tsunade personally and, after long persuasion, bring her here. The woman will teach her how to control chakra over again – in this body she simply wasn't able to perfectly control it as she did in her own – and be able to help with destruction of Akatsuki, as well as any other dangerous organisation.

Will she find it in her to let one of the people she greatly valued and adored die by Orochimaru? But what if she is able to stop Orochimaru beforehand and-

Shaking her head, she knocked and entered Hokage's office a second later. It was weird to see it they way Third kept it: there were no empty bottles of sake laying under the table that, by the way, didn't look that clean in years.

"Hokage-sama, I need to talk to you," she announced, closing the door behind her. The office was empty, save for the Hokage himself. He didn't yet look as old as he did days before his death, which caused her to unconsciously bite her lip. Sarutobi was now smiling at her and it always made him look younger and more innocent than he actually was; he reminded her of a kind and loving grandfather – which, as Konohomaru always told people – he was, rather then a vicious, strategic man that went through war and put his life to protect Leaf.

"Did something happen? You don't seem like yourself," he commented, motioning for her to sit but Sakura decided against it.

"Hokage-sama, the issue I need to discuss with you is very important and can cost people of this village their lives," Haruno hated people that were beating around the bush – she knew better than to waste precious time.

Sandaime's face toughened; he assessed the phrase and Sakura's – or, rather, Naruto's – appearance but still didn't look worried or at least interested, probably taking it as a joke. Sakura's fear was justified a moment later. "Naruto, I don't have time for your games."

"This is no game, God of Shinobi," she answered sternly, "so I would ask you to take a seat and listen to what I am going to say. I'm not who you think you are."

Lucklily, the man seemed intrigued enough to do as she said, and pinkette began her story.

It took her an hour of talking and 'Henge' to her original self to subsequently prove to the Hokage that she was from the future and warn him of possible threats. She didn't include a word about his death or Tsunade's position as Godaime, but she made it crystal clear that she knew the full story behind Uchiha's massacre.

While he was processing the information, Sakura went back to her now constant form in case anyone would walk in and sat on the window sill, waiting for Hokage's decision. She admitted to herself that her main reason for telling Hokage all of this wasn't her heroism but her uncertainty that she can achieve it alone and the degree to which she feared of putting all of this on herself. There was no denying it that she was a strong-minded kunoichi; nevertheless, it was wrong to assume that a 17-years-old girl can decide world's fate and deciding whether to let Sarutobi live or die reminded her of playing God.

And she was no God.

"I think it is needless to mention that I want you to keep it in secret from the village?" Sandaime asked not facing her, to which she replied with a quiet 'Hai'. The man gave out a tired sigh and his head bowed, shoulders hitching at the same time. She could only imagine what was going through his already busy mind. "You said that you don't know why you were sent here?"

"I wasn't 'sent here' at that," she said, frowning. "It happened because of, as I presume, clash of chakra's or something similar. The last thing that occupied my mind before I travelled here was Naruto and, I guess, it somehow effected where I would land."

Silence. "But you have your thoughts on it?"

"It may sound stupid, but yes, I think I know what I ought to do." Sakura fixed blue headband on her forehead and fidgeted her jumpsuit's orange sleeve. "You see, as I already explained, the next four years are gonna be incredibly tough on Konohagakure and I decided to change it. Of course, I can't change everything, thus I will only try to change key events that had a big impact on the future."

Hokage turned around and looked her straight in the eyes, his jaw sat. He didn't seem too amused with the idea. "I presume, Sasuke killing his own brother isn't what you are aiming for?"

"Yes, I want him to find out the truth," she admitted wholeheartedly. "I understand that it is risky and no way in hell is he going to believe me – we barely know each other – which will mean waiting for at least a few months. Also, we need to make sure he doesn't leave the village to seek Orochimaru's power and-"

"You mean, _you _need to make sure he doesn't leave," he elaborated and was met with confused gaze.

"I thought you understood the outcome of him leaving, Hokage-sama," she murmured. "Surely, I will need your help."

"You may need my help, Sakura, but you also need to remember that I am the present Hokage of this village. There are too many things I have to control and keep an eye on. Unfortunately, keeping Sasuke in Konoha is solemnly your task. I will be able to help with figuring out how to put an end to Orochimaru and Akatsuki, but it is all I can promise."

She wanted to break his table in two right now so badly her knuckles itched, but she contained herself. This was the man of strategy, the man that ruled Konoha fairly and justly, the man... that she couldn't recognise. Wasn't he almost directly related to the Uchiha massacre? Didn't he care about Sasuke one bit and simply decided that whatever is going to happen to him is meant to happen?

"I never thought of you less than a hero," she admitted suddenly. "You were always a model figure in my eyes, someone that everyone wanted to be. You always seemed to care about people, no matter the age or the country they came from. I know that you are busy – in future I helped you with a lot of this paperwork – but you never turned your back to people. What changed?"

"I think of the village, first and foremost," he said and his voice was full of sadness and grieve. "I admit that I didn't help as many people as I would like to help but at times you need to make a choice. I chose to help the greater cause; I understand that Sasuke is your close friend but you need to understand that world doesn't concentrate on him. I won't stop you from trying to change the future – interfering always seemed pointless to me, unless the cause is important – but if it happened before, what stops it from happening again?"

"Me," she said and, looking around the office one more time, turned around and walked towards the door, intending to leave before she blew up.

"I see that you are a strong person, Haruno Sakura, but strong doesn't necessarily mean smart," Sarutobi said, deep in his thoughts. "Ninjas aren't allowed to act reckless."

* * *

Entering the classroom the next morning felt weird; on her way there she was met by a number of teenage boys greeting her – otherwise, Naruto – and congratulating on 'finally passing the exam!' which felt all types of weird. For once, they looked genuinely happy for her but... didn't nearly everyone hate him at this stage?

"Settle down, I am going to announce your teams!" Iruka-sensei said and soon everyone took a free place; present Sakura resisted an urge to roll her eyes when she saw her past self promptly set next to grumpy as always Sasuke.

"Next, team Seven, Haruno Sakura, Uzumaki Naruto and Uchiha Sasuke." Good, it seemed that Hokage listened to her in the end.

Hours later, when the three of them sat in an empty room, waiting for their sensei to arrive, Sakura decided to pull a trick like Naruto did, but a bit different. She snickered, receiving weird glances from both of her teammates.

"Why the hell are you laughing, baka?" Past Sakura asked in exasperated tone, sitting next to Sasuke who didn't seem to care.

"Sensei is late, so he better be prepared for a surprise," present Sakura snickered, pulling a few strings and attaching a rubber to it. "We'll see how ready he'll be."

"Why do you think it's a male sensei?" Past Sakura inquired, her left eyebrow raised.

She had to think of an answer – and fast. "Well, I'm a problematic student, hence Hokage is likely to assign some strict sensei to our group. Also, I don't know about you, Sakura-chan, but I haven't seen a single bad ass female sensei in Konoha."

"How do you know any of them? I thought they are jonins, meaning you wouldn't know them, unless of some special circumstances," past Haruno whined and then there were footsteps out side the room. Both petal-haired girls instantly became quiet, waiting while Uchiha pretended that he didn't give a damn.

The door opened but the three students didn't have a time to even blink when the strings were ripped off and the rubber flew out of the window. With her eyes wide open, Sakura opened and closed her mouth like a fish, not producing any sound.

"Hello, kids, I am your sensei now. You've gotta know that those pigs that disobey me will be failed as genins immediately and I am making rules here. Name is Morino Ibiki."

* * *

A/N: For those of you who keep up with the recent manga, accept my Internet-hug. We need it. For those who don't... well, let's just say chapter 662 has been the most emotional chapter since... ever.

Okay, folks, I know that all this thinking Sakura does can get annoying but bear with me – I'm trying to get most of the 'what if' and 'maybe' out of the way so that there's gonna be more description of actions in future. I will see you soon, and, as always, feedback is quite welcome!


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Ibiki Morino? _Seriously?_

She had some serious stuff to discuss with Hokage.

Slightly turning her head, she could see past Sakura's horrified face and even Sasuke looked somewhat amused.

_Oh, wait till you see his bold head with a dozen of scars._

"A-ano you don't look like typical sensei," past Sakura voiced her concern, receiving a smug smile from Ibiki.

"Indeed, I'm not 'typical' – in fact, I'm anything but typical," he replied. "Now, I wouldn't want to waste time. Let's go."

As they left the Academy, newly formed Team 7 started heading towards the training grounds. The weather was boiling and Sakura could how uncomfortable her past self and Sasuke seemed to feel, even though both tried to hide it. She wasn't so new to the idea of hot weather, for she received a number of missions in the Wind Country and sometimes she and her teammates had to survive hours without water in the worst conditions.

She then turned her head to face forward, looking at her sensei's back. There weren't many things she knew about this man and she doubted she even will – Morino, albeit being cheeky at times, knew exactly what to say and when to say it. Haruno didn't think she would be able to change anything in his time line – his brother, to her knowledge, was alive and fine and he himself didn't lose anyone else during the next four years.

The group soon reached the training grounds and, to Sakura's immense surprise, it was the same one she and her team tried to take the bells away from Kakashi. Pinkette felt somewhat nostalgic and softly smiled, looking around. Back in the days...

"Am I boring you, Uzumaki?" Ibiki's voice sounded from her left and Sakura, trying to act like Naruto as good as she could, pouted and crossed hands over her chest.

"We just came here and doing nothing productive. I thought we gonna meet and have a mission straight away, not come to some training grounds," she whined with a frown.

In response – she didn't have any time to blink – she was hit in her back and sent flying a few meters, soon collapsing with the ground and having a mouthful of dirt. Slowly getting up, she swore under her breath – she had no idea that this time-traveling had any impact on her ninja senses! On the other hand, it might be due to how safe she felt, not expecting any sort of attack. _Darn it!_

"I see someone is getting too arrogant of himself, huh? Should I remind you that you are nothing more but dirt on my sandal right now? You don't mean anything in this world right now and you won't if you continue with such attitude. I have patience – not much, but trust me when I say that I'll be able to put you in place." Team 7's sensei said, almost laughing. Sakura could hear 'Baka!' from past Sakura and a regular 'Hmpf usuratonkachi' from Sasuke.

Things didn't seem to change a bit.

"I know that I have to do some sort of test to decide whether you can be genins or not." Pregnant silence. "Which is why I give you the ability to decide on how you want to pass."

"Whaa!" The three members of Team 7 shouted, looking appalled while Ibiki took a comfortable seat on the grass with his elbows on his knees, hands locked.

"I give you the right to impress me. I don't care whether it's something book-worth, a useful technique or an impressive taijutsu – you should make a wise choice," the man elaborated, looking closely at each one of his students which looked terrified, save for Naruto who looked to be deep in thoughts.

_Hmm, _Ibiki squinted – something about this boy didn't look right. From what he was told, Uzumaki was an obnoxious little rule-breaker, not able to concentrate on something for longer than five seconds. On the other hand, the young blond was Yondaime's offspring – you could expect anything from him!

"Half an hour – then I'll decide your fate as a shinobi!"

* * *

_4 days after Madara and Obito were defeated_

The war was gruesome, bringing everyone so much immense pain it would be impossible to describe. There wasn't any free space to bury dead bodies, for cemeteries were filled with them. No one was brave enough to propose and burn them – too disrestpectful, too soon after their death. The Hidden Leaf was slowly getting into its ordinary routine, but its usual positive aura wasn't present. Everyone seemed a bit off, even small kids that barely knew the meaning behind a word 'war'. Dozens of devastated families were mourning and no one was ready to just go on, forgetting everyone who gave up their lives to save the village.

Naruto was slowly passing by the shops, hands in his pockets; his bowed head and fringe hid his somber gaze that couldn't possibly belong to a 17-years-old boy. He experienced so much during the last four years – far more than most people ever will – but he accepted this fact long ago. As Neji once said, 'You can't escape fate'.

In the end, he seemed to be right – and Naruto hated it with every part of his broken soul.

This war didn't only take away hundreds of lives, but it also took away his best pinkette friend and left his brunet rival not being able to ever use chakra which, to Sasuke, was worse than death.

Yesterday Konoha organised an official bureal for those who died in the 'bloodbath', as citizens called it. At first, Uzumaki didn't feel like coming, yet he decided that it would be lack of respect for everyone who fought; more than that, it had to be the first time he visited Sakura's grave that contained her body just as it was left – he asked not to wash off the blood or change anything about her. With a sad smile, he realised that he resembled Kakashi and could imagine himself being constantly late to his future team's meetings because he was visiting Sakura's grave.

He didn't shed a single tear during her funeral.

His insides were tearing apart, beast inside him – not Kurama but someone that was a darker side of himself – screamed in anguish, trying to get out and avenge her. It was ironic that he was now the one talking about revenge, but there was no one to kill for her sake anymore.

When her eyes closed and she let out her last breath, he shook her for what felt like hours, though, according to Hinata, it was mere minutes. He couldn't accept it – couldn't accept that _she, _of all people, died.

He denied it with pure anger.

And this anger took the best of him, causing Naruto to lose control and stop thinking rationally by literally destroying everything around him and denying help.

The anger he promised to hide and never bring back.

"Naruto."

Young blond stopped in his tracks. For a long moment all he could do was stare at the ground but, oh so slowly, he finally looked up at the person in front of him. And, by Kami, it was one of the first people he didn't want to see any time soon.

"Ohayo, Kakashi-sensei," he replied hoarsely, not recognising his voice. Still, he didn't talk for quite some time now which was rather unfamiliar for him, so that was to be expected.

Older man cringed at the seemingly fake cheerfulness and looked above his student's head, refusing to even look at how utterly destroyed he looked.

"No need to fake that you are okay around me, Naruto," he replied quietly and a moment of silence passed between them, both not knowing what was next. "I know what you are going through right now and I can see how depression affects you-"

"You know nothing," growled Naruto, causing Kakashi to close his lone eye in internal pain. "I already know that you lost both of your team-mates – though one of them turned out to be very much alive – so our situation may seem similar because we both lost our female best friends but you have no right to say this. Your team-mate died over a decade ago but mine died four days ago." He clutched his fists in rage and looked up at his sensei with tears in his sky-blue eyes. "The pain is still fresh, don't you dare!"

In response Kakashi didn't say anything, instead nodding, and finally looked in Naruto's hurt eyes. He didn't want to argue that Rin and Obito's – that sweet, innocent Obito's – last breaths were haunting him in nightmares, that the memories were crisp and clear and he was able to replay them at any point in his life, doubting he will be ever able to forget. These memories won't be affected by upcoming years.

Naruto acknowledged how much Sakura meant to Kakashi – of that Hatake was sure, as she was as important to him as Rin or Obito back when they were genins. And he fully understood why Naruto was so pissed off and at the moment the only way to calm down Naruto would be leaving him alone. However, Hero of the Sharingan had other plans.

"I wanted to tell you that Sasuke has a break from his interrogations right now, so it would be wise of you to visit him," he said to his student – former one, at that, but Kakashi still thought of Naruto as his student. "I know that you are feeling like your whole world doesn't make sense anymore – I can't say I understand how painful it is but I know that you need to break out of it. Go talk to Sasuke – argue, tell him everything you think because you need to rant."

With that, Kakashi turned around and left, while Naruto continued standing in the middle of the street, staring into distance.

Truth to be told, he wanted nothing more to rant, to get all of this pain out – but was it wise to meet Sasuke?

Well, he'll just need to find out.

Turning around 180 degrees, he took off to Konoha's one and only prison. People there knew him – in fact, there wasn't anyone in Konoha that didn't – but guards that worked in Konoha's prison were told to know everything about him years ago. Uzumaki suspected it was Danzo's idea.

As he entered the prison and nodded to both guards, one of them took him to Sasuke's prison. Young – and, now, the single remaining – Uchiha was still considered as an S-class criminal and Naruto knew it wasn't about to change in close future; of that Godaime assured him.

The guard stood near the wall while Naruto went further and soon stood in front of Sasuke's cell. It was relatively small, smelled of dirt and sweat but arrogant Uchiha didn't seem to be care.

Because Sasuke couldn't use his chakra anymore, there was no need in bracelets restraining chakra or sorts, yet Tsunade still warned him that, although Sasuke couldn't use ninjutsu anymore, he was still in good shape and, with a little bit of luck, can kill someone without breaking a sweat.

Naruto just stood – far enough that Sasuke won't reach him, though he doubted he would dare to. Uzumaki didn't get to see his best friend for three days now – Tsunade ordered to keep him in prison, away from everyone, and only let out for interrogations. The visits that anyone could have with him could be no longer than twenty minutes and everyone were searched when entering because of the risk of giving him a weapon of some sorts.

"Hey, Sasuke." Naruto finally said, though he was talking to his friend's back. Uchiha stayed unmoving, making blond feel nervous all of a sudden. "So, uh, Tsunade-baa-chan told me that you voluntarily decided to come back to Konoha – not sure if it's because of all this 'Hokage crap' you've been saying." He chuckled, though it wasn't nearly as genuine or happy as it usually was.

He then went silent and deeply inhaled. "Look, teme, I have things to do and, although I'm really happy that you decided to come back, we both know that our team will never be complete again. Not without... Sakura-chan."

Saying her name out loud wasn't suppose to hurt so badly.

"I've... I've been to her burial," Naruto started, nervously licking his lips and taking a seat near the wall. "Hokage said a lot of amazing things about everyone but especially about her. She... kso! She protected me with her life! If she didn't jump in front of that attack, she would be still alive!"

Silence.

"Godaime and Kakashi told me that she did it willingly and there isn't my fault in any of it but I just can't help it. If I was careful enough, none of this would've happened!"

"But you weren't."

Sasuke's gravely voice startled Naruto but he kept on listening.

"You can continue blaming yourself for every bad damn thing that has ever happened in your life – or happened to someone else because of you but it doesn't change the fact that it has happened. You need to come in terms with it and accept it, usuratonkachi."

"How can you say that about Sakura-chan?" Uzumaki quietly asked, now facing Uchiha but he didn't feel angry because of his words. His voice sounded a bit off, a bit... empty. "She was your team-mate and friend."

"I don't look at the past and over-think it. What is the reason."

"Didn't you ever think about the possibility of Itachi telling you everything before you got to kill him?"

Pause. "Urusai, Naruto."

"Truth hurts, doesn't it? And you can deny it all you want but you care about Sakura-chan. Not like I or her friends – you care about people in a cold manner, barely showing it. I know you, teme." Sad smile. "So I won't argue with you. I only came here because Kakashi told me you are, for once, free. Still, I was wondering if you would want to hear what I said on Sakura's burial but I already know that you don't care."

Sasuke finally turned around and faced him – and, for one moment, blond couldn't recognise his best friend in this man. He looked defeated and broken and his eyes, for once, didn't seem cold and uncaring – they were simply tired. These weren't the eyes of a boy – these were the eyes of a man who went through hell and back and saw it all.

"I don't care about a lot of things right now, Naruto," he replied coldly. "Do whatever you want."

And so Naruto did. He told him his exact speech – heartbreaking as it was, Uchiha's face expression remained a perfect mask of uncaring, though his eyes were a different story.

Soon, Naruto left, promising that he'll visit him somewhere during the week, but he didn't reply. Instead, Sharingan owner was deep in thoughts about what was his future plan.

It would probably take months before Konoha decides on his punishment and let him do anything but it didn't matter to him anymore. Uchiha doubted anything did, for he was now a mere citizen, unable to perform the simplest jutsu because of Madara's attack that hurt his chakra flow and made him practically disabled. Tsunade argued that he was lucky to even walk, yet he failed to see how this situation was 'lucky'.

Quite frankly, there was no reason for him to live anymore. It sounded ridiculous, but these were the facts: in a matter of seconds he lost years of his trainings and his power – one of the only things that mattered to him in the world. What will he do now? Will there be a reason for him to stay in Konoha and live a normal, civilised life?

Sasuke smirked – there was no way in hell he'll quietly sit in this pit and remain weak, as long as there was something – and he was sure there was something – he could do about it. If Sakura was still alive, he was sure he would be able to pull a few strings and make her look in the books of hers that would possibly return his chakra back. After he left Konoha, he never admitted in caring for anyone but his family members, though deep down he knew he cared about Team 7 and Sakura's death was... unsettling.

_We both know that our team will never be complete again._

"Urusai," Sasuke whispered to himself, closing his eyes.

He will be patient and will be rewarded for it.

* * *

"We're ready!" Present Sakura shouted, giving a thumb-up and smiling.

"Hmm impress me then," Ibiki smirked, looking up from scrolls in his hands. "Who's gonna be first?"

"I am, dattebayo!" Sakura shouted, standing in a pose, ready to perform Chakra Enhanced Strength. She performed a replacement technique a few minutes ago, testing her abilities, and everything worked just fine – it seemed like she was finally adjusting to Naruto's body and was able to control her chakra. She knew that her chakra control was far from being perfect in this body but there would be enough for a good punch.

Screaming "Shannaro!" on instinct, she launched and hit the ground, making a relatively big – nothing comparing to her usual hit – hole, startling her team-mates. Ibiki, however, remained unimpressed, only smirking and nodding for Sasuke to proceed.

As expected, young Uchiha performed Fireball jutsu while past Sakura told him a bunch of information from the book she recently read on jutsus. Present Sakura internally winced at how awfully dependent on theories she was back in the days.

Some time later Ibiki called them up and, with a huge grin, announced, "I doubt you will work good together, each of you not thinking about your team-mates and only about yourselves and I doubt you'll be any good in strategies but I officially announce that Team 7 is now on game!"

* * *

A/N: Don't worry, the cover is right – we gonna see a lot of Kakashi in future! So how was that? Also, I wonder if people want to see more of Naruto and Sasuke. I hope you liked it, please review - it means a lot to me :)


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five

**WARNING: for those of you who don't like too much blood and slight torture, don't read the end of the chapter**

It wasn't that Sakura wasn't happy about her life; somehow, she came back from the dead, was placed in her own team and was now able to change the gruesome future Konoha had yet to face. Still, as she looked at young Sasuke cleaning kunai a few meters away from her and her own past self clinging on him, she had a bitter feeling about the whole thing.

It has been a few days since their team passed and Morino Ibiki became their sensei – said man was sitting under the tree and, it seemed to Haruno, rested. Yep, her original team was way different.

The day before she came up to Hokage and talked with him about changing Ibiki to Hatake Kakashi, to which Sarutobi simply smirked and waved her off. Boy she was pissed but she wasn't in a situation to make demands.

_Even after I explain to him how important it is for Sasuke to train with someone who has Sharingan and can help him with it..!_

Suddenly, there was movement from behind and Sakura swiftly turned around, holding kunai in her hand, ready to fight back. Her blue orbs widened. "Kaka-"

"Eh?" Shinobi with gray hair questioned, his right eyebrow popped up. Moment later his eye barely widened – one wouldn't notice it unless one knew Kakashi.

_He probably thinks how much I remind him of Minato, _Sakura said and tried to control her urge to hug him. Ever since the fight against Madara and Obito started, she didn't get to see much of her sensei, so she missed him dearly but how could she express it if he didn't know of her true identity!

"Your name is Kakashi Hatake, isn't it?" she cautiously approached, keeping a silly grin on her face, not letting herself forget who this man really was. Occasionally, she used to let her mind slip and forget just how dangerous her sensei was but now was no time or place to do so. "I heard that you are one of the best Jönins in Konoha but I don't care because I'm gonna suppress you!"

Kakashi blinked a few times. "In your dreams, baka."

Her new team-mates and Ibiki approached soon after with Morino pushing Sakura aside by grabbing her jumpsuit's sleeve and past Sakura and Sasuke looking more annoyed than usually.

"Why did you come here, Kakashi?"

"I have some issues to discuss with you that are private," shinobi announced, nodding at the group of Genins.

"Sure. Oi, Sasuke, Naruto – its your turn to spar!" Morino shouted at them, causing all three to jump. "Sakura, fill our bottles with water – the river is to the south-east, it will take you about ten minutes to get there."

With that, the two men walked away and the next thing present Sakura knew, Sasuke's chakra suddenly burst out and it gave him out. Ducking, she was able to avoid a hit that was supposed to hit her skull and make her fly a few meters over the ground.

_To hell with it, I'm not getting tossed around again, Shannaro!_

As Sasuke turned to hit her once again, she rushed forward and she headbutted little prick's nose causing him to feel disorientated for a short moment. However, it was enough for her to place a good punch to his stomach using her chakra and her opponent flew to the ground.

Disappearing in a cloud of smoke.

_Kso, Kawarimi no Jutsu, _Sakura realised belatedly, already considering the type of technique to use on Sasuke. Demonic Illusion: Tree Binding Death? Even though this Sasuke wasn't nearly as strong as his brother, she was certain that his Sharingan will be able to detect Genjutsu. Then-

"Let's do it the old way, teme!" she shouted, turning 180 degrees with her leg already mid-air and hitting Uchiha that planned to attack her from behind. However, he was ready for it and simply grabbed Sakura's leg and flipped it, causing Sakura to almost lose her balance. Instead, she was able to land on her hands by turning away from him and, pushing, hit Sasuke right in the stomach with her left leg while her right one pushed on the ground and jumping which caused her hit to be more powerful.

Sasuke wasn't lucky enough to lend on his feet, for he was a mere Genin, Sakura has reasoned. Instead he felt on his back but he promptly got up in record time and was already making hand seals.

"Rat, Tiger, Dog, Ox, Rabbit, Tiger. Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted, releasing a volley of small fireballs that were sent flying in her direction in unpredictable manner. Off-handedly, she remembered the first time she saw Sasuke using it – back in Chuunin exam where he almost killed the Sound ninjas that attacked them. In this timeline they weren't about to have an exam for at least next few weeks and Sakura, ducking from fireballs and throwing some kunais in response. It was difficult to constantly think which techniques would be alright for her to use at this age and which would seem too powerful for a typical Genin.

The fight was a matter of fifteen minutes before Ibiki came back and told them to break it off. Unsurprisingly, the spar seemed childish to Sakura and she couldn't help but wonder if Sasuke didn't have any major strengths back when they were Genins and that she only imagined him being almighty and powerful at this age.

"Kakashi just told me of Hokage's new program to make Genins' progress more effective," Ibiki announced, hands crossed on his chest. Out of the corner oh her eye, present Sakura could see her past self approaching them, almost beaming with pride and holding four bottles of water. "I'm sure you won't be too enthusiastic about the whole idea, but Team 7 is now going to work with two other teams that graduated this year – teams 8 and 10! This formation will be called Rookie 9!"

Well, this was definitely an unexpected turn of events! 'Rookie 9' was formed after Sasuke left Konoha, including 11 of Leaf's Genins. However, this whole plan about working together without Guy's team... Sakura felt suspicious.

Some time later she felt foreign chakra in the woods, and so did Ibiki, judging by his squinted eyes; past Sakura and Sasuke, however, were still Genins and weren't able to detect it. However, Haruno's fists soon loosened because she recognised the charka – in fact, she knew it all too well.

Leaves in the forest started rustling and all of them turned around to face the newly arrived members of Team 8. Just as she remembered, Shino looked secretive as ever, Kiba wasn't all too pleased with current situation, Kurenai beamed with pride and Hinata-

Oh dear Kami, Hinata.

How could she forget that the poor girl loved her turretless blond friend?

"Ah, do we really need to work with them?" Kiba sighed, looking at the team in front of him. "I think this whole ordeal is idiotic and I doubt we can work together with the weak ones."

"No one was asking you, Inuzuka," present Sakura growled with her Inner self ready to attack this little brat.

_'Weak ones', my ass. If he's gonna act like Sasuke, I'll definitely punch him._

"Oh, look who's talking now," he mused, coming closer and lowering his head to be on the same level as Sakura. "I see that you are as short as even, Uzumaki."

Her left eye twitched and she started rolling up her jumpsuit's sleeves. "At least I'm not as weak as you!"

"A-ano, Naruto-k-kun," Hinata said while looking away and a bright blush on her pale cheeks. "Kiba-kun doesn't r-really mean that, he's just t-teasing you."

Praying to all Gods there were to forgive her, she smiled wildly and almost shouted, "Yep, because he's a complete baka! Hinata-chan, you are such a good friend and always help me!"

Girl's eyes widened as she was met with confused gaze of white eyes. Shit, Naruto and Hinata barely had any interactions before graduating from the Academy! "I-I mean, I'm sure you are a helpful and caring person! We never really talked but that's what I heard," present Sakura quickly added with her left hand behind her head and a goofy smile on her face.

She could see how nervous that made Hinata as the brunet looked on the verge of fainting.

"Stop flirting already, it makes me wanna barf," Inuzuka smirked, making Hinata blush even more – if it was possible.

"Hah? I'm not flirting with Hinata-chan, I'm already in love with Sakura-chan!" Present Sakura said throwing her fist into the air; internally, she was screaming and crying that confessing to her own self was now a compulsory thing to do.

"Shut up, baka!" Past Sakura shouted, placing a good punch to her face, causing present Sakura to fall with a loud 'thum'.

"Okay, I see you can work with each other if needed," Ibiki said with closed eyes. "We wait for Team 10 and begin our harsh training. Uzumaki, Inuzuka – get as far away from each other as possible."

* * *

Temari swiftly took off her cloak, throwing it at the nearest chair. She then proceeded to change her footwear and go further into apartment. Slowly, she looked around, realising that her brothers were still out and she had some time for herself.

Blonde breathed in deeply and collapsed on a nearby chair, rubbing her eyes – something she wasn't able to do for a very long time because her brothers were always there.

Today was a long and burdensome day as she and Kankuro were told of the arising situation with Akatsuki. For a few years now, Sunagakure kept close eye on the organisation that could potentially wipe their village off, despite it being an almost impossible task. It was difficult enough to find someone brave and smart enough to gather information on them. As of now Sunagakure's government knew of it's goal – to collect all 9 tailed beasts, though the reason for it wasn't known.

As it was written in files that she received a few hours ago, there were 9 members that Suna knew of, each being more powerful than other. It was hard for her to accept that one of them – Akasuna no Sasori – was born in Suna and happened to be one of the best puppeteer their village has ever known. It was a shame, really, that his skills were wasted.

Either way, today she and Kankuro were called up and told of the dangerous situation Suna was in. Apparently, two Akatsuki members were not far from Sunagakure and were looking for some information, considering her youngest brother. It was unlikely that they were about to attack – with Sand being fully ready for the attack – but this organisation consisted of the most dangerous men in the world. Who knew just how strong they really were?

Temari would be lying if she said that she wasn't worried for Gaara but then, what could she do? She was scared of him – no denying that – yet she still cared about him. If only he wasn't a Jinchuuriki, young blonde was sure their relationship would be pretty much opposite. Nevertheless, their own Father decided on leaving his younger children without a 'normal' brother. She couldn't say she hated him – he was her Father, in the end, and only did what he did to protect their village – but she sure as hell would never be able to forgive him. Secretly from everyone else, she blamed her Father for Mother's death and knew that if it was ever let out, she will face serious prosecution.

Suddenly, she sensed foreign chakra that didn't feel like ordinary chakra either. It felt cold and dominant while her own was warm and controlled; it felt as if its owner's body wasn't able to contain it. Was it enemy's shinobi? But if it was, wouldn't other shinobi notice?

Not bothering to change her shoes and grabbing her fan, she rushed out of the apartment, not locking the door.

Temari followed the chakra's flow and was surprised when she found its source in a spherical structure in the centre of the village where her Father – present Kazekage – spent most of his time. Not wasting any time, she ran into the building; when she approached the door that led to Kazekage's office, however, she stopped dead in her tracks because she heard voices discussing something. And the weird chakra was definitely coming from her Father's office.

Cautiously, she approached it and, leaning on the door, started intensely listening.

"... hope this is all you need," sounded her Father's muffled voice.

"I can assure you that this is all, Kazekage-sama," unfamiliar voice hissed and blonde couldn't help but think about big, slimy snake. This voice... it was just as powerful as its owner's chakra. Girl couldn't help but feel terrified – the damn calmness was the scariest.

"Then I advise you to go – the times in Suna aren't calm; albeit the majority of citizens not knowing about Akatsuki's future plans, those of them who were informed are very cautious. Appearance of a man with a suspicious attire like yours may cause questions."

"And I shall do just that but don't forget about our deal," the man said in a teasing tone and started moving towards the door. All Temari could do was run towards the stairs and away from the building, in hopes that she won't be chased.

She just found out about something important, she was sure of it – but what was it?

* * *

An abrupt swing of katana and man's head felt on the ground, his eyes and mouth wide open. Moment later, his body dropped on the ground, too, causing blood running out of his body like a stream.

"You know you could've done it in a more civilised way," Itachi calmly noted, a frown on his face. Indeed, this man knew too much about Akatsuki, but there wasn't any good reason to leave his dead body lying in the middle of the street. "It will cause unnecessary attention."

"So what," Kisame grinned, swinging the katana in his right hand. "Gee, it has been long since I used an ordinary katana – shame I had to hide my Samehada."

"You can retrieve it now as we found all the information we needed," Uchiha genius replied stoically, starting to walk. "We have to meet with Harui Mahuto in less than three hours. We need to start moving."

As they took off, Hoshigaki started with one of his pointless conversations. "I see you are timid today. Expecting something exciting with this Harui guy?"

"He's a Chuunin-rank nin, there is nothing exciting about him, except for his knowledge on the Nine-Tailed," came brunet's answer. "Even so, killing him would not be necessary."

"Eh? I though Pein told us to get rid on anyone who can become a possible threat," hummed Kisame but then smirked. "Leader was right, though – you are one of the smartest in Akatsuki and you are just 17!"

"Hm."

Older man gave out a rasped laugh, "As talkative as always, I see! And I still don't understand why would we leave him alive?"

"I will find out all the information I need on the Nine-Tailed beast and then torture him, using Mangekyo to tell everyone that two Akatsuki members were asking him about the One-Tailed, as I did the previous time," Uchiha elaborated. "Suna is in disastrous situation right now – all they need is a little push that their village might be in big danger, which will lead to a series of reckless decisions. It can go as far as announcing war to one of the Hidden Villages that will consume everyone's attention while we retreat the Jinchuuriki of the Nine-Tailed."

"Aah that's a good plan," the Monster of the Hidden Mist sneered, showing his sharp teeth that made most citizens freeze in shock or run away, screaming. He never told his younger partner why exactly he looked like a shark but Itachi already had a few ideas on his own. "Well then, I know that the Nine-Tailed Jinchuuriki lives in Konoha – the same village you are from – and I was wondering if you have any other business to attend there and if you need my assistance?"

"I can retreat Jinchuuriki by my own but Leader insists on us working together. You are free to do as you wish," Itachi said, his thoughts being far away from Jinchuuriki. Young nukenin knew that, were he wish for it, he would be able to sneak in Konoha and check his brother's progress; the urge was always there. Nonetheless, he hadn't been in Akatsuki for long enough for Leader to trust him completely and let him go to an important by himself. It was shame, really, but Itachi wasn't about to argue.

Truth to be told, being a double agent wasn't easy, especially when he had to kill innocent people for the sake of showing his loyalty to this organisation. It wasn't as hard now because all of the emotions that remained with him after leaving Konohagakure were turned off. The only type of emotion he felt anymore was fear when Akatsuki discussed their attacks on Fire nation as there was always a possibility that it would affect Leaf.

Begrudgingly, he tried to keep his mind off Konoha and instead think of the upcoming interrogation. Over the years torturing people became his second nature – the man wasn't completely sure if it made him feel disgusted with himself or proud.

He kept assuring himself that it was part of being ninja and he only did it to protect his little brother. However, he wasn't delusional and knew all too well that he was getting accustomed to killing people. That he liked it.

His family called him the genius of their clan, yet he was slowly, but surely indulging himself into something he, as a kid, deeply despised: killing not because it was an assigned task but because of the selfish reasons.

He wasn't sure he knew himself anymore.

_Burn, doubts, because there is no way back. Burn, because no one can escape predestined path._

* * *

It was sunset in Konoha when Danzo received a letter, stating that the group of ANBU, sent out to retrieve an important scroll from the Land of Earth failed to do so as they were beheater; another group already set off to destroy the bodies – whoever it was that killed them, he didn't seem to care about secrets he would be able to find in their dead bodies. _The Fire Daimyo will not be happy to hear this,_ Shimura mused, hiding the letter when he heard Sandaime entering.

"May I know the reason you are in my office, Danso?" The Third Hokage asked, looking rather displeased.

"I assume you know of Akatsuki's actions on the Land of Wind's border?" he asked all too calmly, facing the man he once treated as a friend.

"Hai, I was informed, yet I don't see what is there to discuss." Sarutobi passed by him and took a seat on his chair, looking out on the streets. "Unless the ANBU squad you sent out a week ago was able to find some information."

Danso didn't reply to the question – there was no need for Hokage to know about that group not being assigned to find clues on Akatsuki's future plans but instead on doing something for Fire's Daimyo that would bring them a great reward. Hiruzen, Danso knew, never put village's safety above money rewards, therefore Shimura didn't expect him to understand the importance of pleasing Daimyo for the sake of money.

"I expect them to return tomorrow," he said sternly, "and I prohibited any sort of communication with Konoha – even coded. This isn't a safe time."

"Agreed."

Silence.

"It's good that you are informed of Akatsuki's actions but, I'm afraid, I need to leave now," Danso nodded, the letter laying safely in his pocket. "There are still some things I need to take care of."

"I hope you understand why I don't trust you," Hokage said as the leader of 'Root' opened the door.

"The feeling is mutual," and with that the door was shut.

"Tch." Hiruzen thought about Danso's words once again. "Squad 5, enter."

The windows were opened all at once and the 5th squad entered Hokage's office as they were waiting outside for at least an hour, just as they were ordered to do. The four of them stood in a line, wearing masks to conceal their identities.

"Report on Danso's actions in my office before I entered," he ordered, his fingers locked.

"He was looking through a letter that was brought to you not twenty minutes ago," one of the ninjas said in a stern voice. "We do not know how he found out about it and its content, but it would accurate to assume that the letter concerned Konoha or some trading he had on the side, pretending that Konoha's Hokage was informed and agreed to it."

"Hm, that would be all," Hiruzen nodded. "Dismissed."

The squad was gone a second later and all windows were closed once again.

_Danso. Shimura, what kind of games are you playing._

However, Sarutobi knew that he had no right talking about caring about villagers more than about other countries' opinion of Leaf – he never forgot what he did to make his older son stronger in order to show that Hokage's offsprings are as strong as he is.

* * *

_18 years before Madara and Obito were destroyed_

"Hanketsu, what did I tell you about being a shinobi?" Hiruzen Saturobi asked his older son with a blank expression.

"That they can't have mercy on their enemies," said Hanketsu, tears streaming down his face and hands trembling. The kunai he was holding with both hands was smeared in blood, some of it falling on young boy's hands.

"Then what are you waiting for?" Older man sighed, rubbing his temples. He had a lot of things to do, so he couldn't just waste time, standing in the woods with concatenated half-dead criminal laying on the ground not a few meters away from his son.

He realised that Asuma is likely to come out as a stronger shinobi than his older brother around four years ago when Asuma barely turned six, yet he refused to give up on Hanketsu.

"Mother said that I don't need to be a magnificent shinobi like you and Otōto," the boy sniffed.

The man groaned, "Forget what your mother said and, for once, be a man!"

Hesitantly, young boy let one of his hands drop and started to slowly approach the criminal. Sweat appeared on his forehead but he didn't seem to notice. His eyes were fixed on a broken but smirking man in front of him. All he had to do was kill him, and his Dad would be happy – it wasn't so difficult, was it? Hundreds did it on daily basis, and he, for Kami's sake, was one of the infamous Sarutobis!

He could do this. He could.

However, Hiruzen was tired of waiting. "Asuma!"

Instantly, tree crowns rustled and a ten-years-old brunet landed in between the criminal and his brother. "You were calling, Father?

"Your Nii-san can't perform a simple task of killing a criminal," he dryly replied. "To teach him a lesson, I want you to beat him up and kill like you would if he was your enemy and you let your emotions overtake you."

Nodding, Asuma turned towards the criminal and helped him to stand, taking off his chains in the process that surprised Hanketsu enough to start gaping. "Wh- what is he doing?!"

"Be quiet," came man's cold response and young Hanketsu soon understood why his brother was said to be one of the most talented ninjas of the Leaf.

Asuma's posture seemed cold and composed as if he wasn't about to mercifully kill a man in front of him. He got used to following his Father's rules precisely, therefore trying to imagine the worst case scenario of this man killing everyone he loved. It didn't take him long to get angry, and when old Sarutobi saw his son's fingers barely twitching and his chakra practically burning, he knew his son was ready.

Moments later, the nukenin was thrown in the nearby tree simply by Asuma's angry chakra. However, it wasn't the worst – Asuma's chakra was pushing on the weak body in front of him, especially on internal organs, causing man to breath very husky and cringe at the awful pain in his stomach.

It didn't last for long, though, as soon after Asuma let his chakra go back to its calm flow and instead stepping forward and grabbing nukkenin by his neck. In an instance, he raised man's body like it was nothing and pinned him back to the tree, his eyes burning with hatred. The pressure he applied to nukenin's throat was just enough to make him violently cough and, grabbing onto Asuma's hands, try to break free but young Sarutobi didn't flinch. Instead, using one of his hands to take two kunais from his pouch, he pinned the man to tree again but this time he sliced a kunai through each of his hands and, putting pressure, was able to put them into tree deep enough so that nukenin wasn't able to break free.

The man was screaming in pain, blood seeping through the wounds in his hands that felt like burning and he was sure that, were he to survive this, there was no way he would be so careless about attacking one of Konoha's ninjas alone.

Asuma then proceeded to the simplest taijustsu by repeatedly hitting man's face; it wasn't long after that he heard the sound of breaking bones and nukenin's face became so gruesome and bloody he wasn't recognisable anymore.

Swiftly taking out kunai's which caused hurt criminal to drop on the floor like a bag of bones. Not bothering to put them back in his pouch as Hiruzen will make him clean his kunais afterwards anyway, he dropped them on the ground. Young boy then took a few steps away and, running up, hit him on his back, causing nukenin to flatly lay on the floor.

Seconds later his body was picked up again and he felt an intense hit to his abdomen, making him inwardly bend over. Then – more hits to his legs and arms. More pain. More blood.

"You are taking too long, finish him, Asuma," Hiruzen commanded. His younger son nodded and, sitting down on the ground in front of beaten body, twisted his neck using his legs.

The man was dead.

"_This _is what is expected of you, being a Sarutobi," Hokage commented, turning around and taking off. "It's late, you can train tomorrow."

Asuma followed his Father after picking up his kunais and nodding to his older brother, not paying attention to how shocked and terrified he looked.

No. These were not games anymore, and Hanketsu realised it five years too late when he decided to follow his Father.

* * *

A/N:

Aaand the plot thickens. I feel like I'm finally getting somewhere! Also, anyone confused about the whole 'time-travel thing': don't worry, everything will be explained in time! Hope this chapter was alright and I know I suck at writing fight scenes :) Thanks for the reviews and I do hope for some more feedback soon (shorter/longer chaps, more Sakura & less other characters)


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